Adventures in organic gardening and beekeeping

Garden Journal — Cute? Not with Those Fangs!

At first light Sunday morning as I sat reading the paper, I was startled by Emmie’s fearsome barking. All I could see were some crows pecking at the neighbor’s roof, and while she hates the resident murder of crows (yes, that’s really what a group of crows is called), Emmie usually doesn’t get that worked up about them.

Still her hysterical barking persisted. I was tempted to open the door and let her have at it, but something stopped me. Good thing as the cause finally revealed itself.

Awww! Kind of cute, right? Not really.

I don’t know if it was a she or a he — let’s call it Mama Possum for the heck of it. Mama P was completely unfazed by Emmie’s threats from behind the glass. She sat on the fence for a while watching us and gently rocking from side to side. Then she slowly turned around to make her way back to wherever she came from. That’s when I saw her fangs, and said a silent thank you for the second thought that stopped me from opening the door. I don’t think it would have gone well if Emmie and Mama Possum had gotten into a tussle.

All I really need to worry about now is where the touch-up paint is for the door. It didn’t fare so well in Emmie’s attempts to dig through it to reach Mama P.

4 Responses

You did the right thing. I had one take up temporary residence in my garage. When I realized what it was and that he/she was hunkering down, it was a major hassle getting it out. They are stubborn little things. And they really do play possum. So passive-aggressive!